Mechanisms for the powered adjustment or position setting of automotive seats are well-known in the art. The power in many cases is supplied by separate motors, one for each movement. More recently, a single, reversible motor with plural armatures individually selectable has been used to provide the power. By using this approach or by using separate motors, a compact low silhouette mechanism is possible. Toggle switches or the like selectably control the operation of the motors to provide forward or reverse horizontal movement, and independent raising or lowering of the front and rear ends in the vertical direction.
To provide the drive from the motors to the output mechanisms, various types of mechanical linkages have been used. Most recently, these mechanisms have used drive cable members operated by the respective motors to rotate gear trains. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,437,703 to J. Pickles dated Apr. 8, 1969, a rack and pinion mechanism is driven to produce the horizontal movement. Worm and threaded shaft engagement are frequently used to produce both vertical movements from the respective drive cables.